The Billionaire's Demand

Placing a hand on her sternum Hannah tried to breathe through nausea. She'd demand of her body to keep going and stop holding her back. Closing her eyes she focused entirely on making herself feel better, maybe it was positive thinking because when she opened her eyes again the need to throw up was gone.

Grabbing the wooden tray filled with two steaming cups of jasmine tea and two plates of red velvet cake she pushed through the thick door and entered the store with a smile on her face. She approached the two lovely ladies sitting by the window and placed their order on the table, making sure she didn't spill anything. The ladies appreciated her effort, showing her their bright smiles.

"Thank you, dear." The lady in the blue dress told her.

Hannah lowered the tray, "No problem, let me know if you need anything else."

The lady in the beige dress grabbed onto her wrist and kept her in place, "How are you feeling, dear. Your mother told me you were feeling under the weather the past few days."

She should have known these well-dressed ladies were friends of her mother. Her usual customers were students who did their schoolwork while sipping tons of coffee and eating sweets. Rarely did people who looked like they owned a yacht visit her little coffee shop.

"I'm fine now." She reassured the lady in the beige dress, forcing a polite smile on her face as she brushed back a blonde lock which escaped from her messy bun, "My mother worries too much. But I suppose I can't blame her seeing parents always worry about their children."

The lady in blue nodded, "Well said, sometimes I wished my children would see it that way."

Hannah knew the only reason why she was tolerating her mother's protective behavior was that she was becoming a parent herself. She knew once her baby was born she'd be the same. Always worrying, wanting her child to be safe and protected.

"They'll will, one day." Hannah promised the lady in blue, "Now if you excuse me I need to get back to work."

The lady in blue nodded, "Yes, of course, dear."

Placing the tray on the counter, Hannah watched as her kitchen help entered the store with a tray filled with delicious smelling blueberry muffins.

"Those smell amazing, Maria."

The brunette grinned, "Right?" She stalled them out in the display which kept their products fresh and then looked up, meeting Hannah's gaze, "I put the dishes in the dishwasher and updated the stock list. I'll be working on the cheesecake now. Do you need anything else?"

Hannah placed her hand on Maria's shoulder, giving her a reassuring squeeze, "No, you're doing great work. I don't know what I'd do without you."

Maria's eyes softened, "You don't have to find out either. I'm here to stay."

Hannah was rearranging the sweets on the display when she heard someone clear their throat, trying to get her attention. Standing up she smiled at the older man who stood across her, wearing a nice blue sweater and gray slacks. His sleeves were rolled up, revealing an expensive watch to her. His hair was neatly styled while his hazel eyes took her in and then softened, a warm smile spreading across his face. She was sure the man was in his late forties, maybe even fifties, but you couldn't tell. He looked amazingly handsome for his age.

"I'd like a cappuccino to go, please."

"Anything else, sir?"

"No, that's fine."

She nodded and then went right to work, preparing his cappuccino, making sure not to mess the order up and carefully put the lid on, not wanting to break it. She put a sleeve around the cup to make sure the man wouldn't burn himself and then handed him his coffee. He paid in cash, a bit too much, but he told her to keep the change. She watched as he spun around ready to leave the store but then faced her again. His eyes once again taking her in. She could have sworn he was also staring at her when she was preparing his order. He approached the counter again and placed his free hand on the wooden counter, his hazel eyes narrowing on her.

"Excuse me-." His eyes trailed to her hands before he met her gaze again, "Miss, by any chance, did you stay at the D'Amore hotel last summer?"

She swallowed, not wanting the memories which she pushed into a box being unlocked by this strange man, unfortunately, she couldn't keep the lid closed now. The memories were flooding back to her, but she forced herself to stay grounded. Putting on her impassive mask she lied through her teeth, not wanting to have any connections to that hotel or the man who owned it.

"I'm sorry, I think you've confused me with someone else."

His eyes scanned her face, his eyes telling her he didn't quite believe her answer, "Is that so?" He muttered, his hand tightening around the cup, "Anyway, thank you for the coffee. Have a nice day, Miss."

Once the man left the coffee shop she let out a sigh of relief. She couldn't catch her breath yet though because the lady in blue approached the counter, looking curious about the whole ordeal.

"Who was that man?" She asked, "His style was to die for, don't you think? I didn't spot a ring on his finger so I'm guessing he is still free."

"I don't know." Hannah told her honestly, "But you're right he was well dressed."

"Did you see that watch." The lady in blue leaned over the counter and narrowed her brown eyes on her, "That screams money to me. Handsome, rich and single, what more can a woman ask for?"

A lot. Good health throughout the years and a steady income to provide for your family. There were so many great things Hannah could think of, but she knew the lady in blue wouldn't agree. She didn't actually want to hear her opinion, she just wanted to gossip about the well-dressed man who looked like a model.

"You're right, " Hannah told the woman, not even believing her own words.

Like she thought the woman didn't care, she kept talking on and on about how hard it was to find a decent man to date at her age, that Hannah was lucky to be young and beautiful, in the prime of her life to find a good husband. Hannah didn't want to listen to any of that if she wanted to be preached at for not being married yet she'd give her mother a call. Unfortunately, she had to smile and pretend to be interested in what the lady in blue had to say. It was her job. So Hannah turned off her brain, working on auto-pilot while she let the woman talk off her ears.

***

Hannah kicked off her flats and moved through her apartment, she didn't feel like cooking a complicated meal. Instead, she let some pasta boil in a pot and searched through her fridge for the sauce she made that weekend, heating it up in another pot to have a simple meal. She placed her hand on her stomach, glad she didn't feel sick again. She knew things couldn't continue like that. She owned a small coffee shop and she couldn't afford to take a few days off. She had to push forward. In that moment of weakness though she couldn't help but think that she should have taken the other option. The father of her child didn't even know she was pregnant and she had no intention to tell the cheater either. It would be hard raising a child on her own, so yeah, sometimes her mind wondered to the option which could make her life easier. She reached for her phone and answered it, knowing it was her mother.

"Hey, mom."

"Hannah." Her mother greeted back, "Jenny and Lisa seemed to enjoy having their tea at the shop."

"They were very chatty, " Hannah told her mother, not wanting to sound rude about them, but not wanting to lie either.

The ladies got on her nerves, especially since they were so different in every way from her. They believed getting a husband was the biggest accomplishment of their lives while Hannah believed making sure her coffee shop wouldn't go bankrupt and getting through the year without any health issues was her biggest accomplishment.

"I'm curious about that man Jenny kept talking about."

Hannah rolled her eyes, of course, her mother was also interested in him. She didn't mind that her mother started thinking about dating again. It had been five years since her father passed away, but hearing her mother wanting to date a man solemnly based on his looks and wealth hurt her. She wished her mother wasn't that shallow, but unfortunately, she was.

"Next time he stops by I'll text you." Hannah had been joking, but her mother sounded over the moon by it.

"Please do."

There was an awkward silence between them before her mother continued, "Have you decided what to do about your situation."

Hannah moved to the stove and stirred the sauce, "It's not a situation, mom. I'm pregnant and I've thought about it. I'm thinking about it every day and I'm not going to change my decision."

Her mother sighed, "Honey, keeping the child isn't beneficial for you or that child. Do you think you can do it? Raising a baby on your own and running a shop? It will break you. I know you don't want to give up the shop so you need to-"

"Give up the baby?" She asked, finishing her mother's sentence, "That's not going to happen."

Her mother was silent for a moment before she continued, "Have you considered reaching out to the father? I know you're against it, but he could support you through all of this."

"You don't even know him, mom." I pointed out, "He cheated on me, do you think someone like that would make a great father to a child. When something better comes along he loses interest and moves on, without looking back. I don't see how he can be helpful to me."

"I don't even know him because you're not telling me who he is!"

"It's not important, he's only the sperm donor."

"My God, Hannah, I don't know what to do with you."

"Just respect my wishes, mom, that's all I need from you." She took the wooden spoon out of the pot and placed it on the small plate next to the stove, "I gotta go, mom. I'm going to take a shower and eat dinner. We'll talk tomorrow during lunch? You're still coming over, right?"

"Yes, of course." Her mother sounded less depressed already, "Goodnight, honey."

"Goodnight."

Ending the call Hannah turned off the stove and headed to the bedroom to freshen up and change into some comfortable clothes. She tossed her phone on her bedside table and strolled into her bathroom. While she took a shower her mind drifted like always. She had thought about contacting the father of her child many times. Whenever she felt sick or thought she couldn't do it on her own her mind wondered to that man. But whenever her mind did wonder to him she remembered how he hurt her. He didn't care about her, a man like that she didn't want in her life. So she told herself over and over again not to be weak and suck it up. She'd find a way to make it all work. She was only three months pregnant, she still had time to figure things out.

Holding onto his tablet Nero watched as his father casually strolled through the door, holding another colorful cup from that little coffee shop he kept visiting. He snickered, walking around his desk and taking a seat on the couch instead, watching as his father approached him, raising an eyebrow at him in question. His father was a proud man, sensitive at times, but nevertheless proud. Getting made fun of by his only son was something his father frowned upon. At least he used to frown upon it, nowadays his father mellowed. Sometimes caring too much.

"What?"

"You do realize you're addicted to the coffee from that place-" He nodded to the cup his father was holding, "Right?" He trailed his eyes to his tablet and scanned through his emails, "Should I be jealous of the fact that my father prefers the coffee from some little coffee shop?" He asked jokingly, "The restaurant downstairs serves excellent coffee, only working with the best quality of beans."

"Have you tried it, Nero?" His father asked, raising the cup to his lips and taking a sip, "It's good. You can tell the woman puts a lot of effort into it. The right amount of milk and the beans, they're so rich in flavor-"

"I get it." Nero smiled, "That coffee is made with love, is that it?"

"Mocking your father?" Valerio scoffed, "Have I not taught you any manners?"

"Relax, dad, I was just joking around." Nero looked up from his tablet, "But you have visited that place for weeks now. Maybe I should pay it a visit too?"

"You should." Valerio rested back against the couch and stared ahead, his eyes taking in the portrait Nero had put up behind his desk, it was their family portrait and the sight of it made Valerio smile, "The girl who always makes my coffee is pregnant."

Nero frowned, not understanding why his father was telling him that, "Okay?"

Valerio sat up straight and faced his son, "There is something about her, she seems familiar to me. I just can't place her." He narrowed his eyes at his son, "You should visit that place and let me know why she looks so familiar to me. It's driving me insane not being able to place her."

Hearing his father sound so frustrated over it made him chuckle, "She cute?"

"That's beside the point, Nero." His father scolded him.

Nero held his hands up in defense and got to his feet, heading to his desk and taking a seat behind it, "I have some free time tomorrow morning. I'll drop by and observe the lovely, pregnant lady."

"Don't scare her off, " Valerio muttered.

"Dad. I've never scared a woman off before, I'm not planning to start now."

Valerio glared at him, "It's inappropriate that you're bragging about that in front of your father. Do you think I find it amusing seeing you jump from one woman's bed to another? You're thirty-two, Nero. You're not getting any younger. Isn't it time you start to behave a bit more seriously? At least date a woman longer than three months or so."

Nero didn't like hearing his father say that. A few months ago he played around with the thought of making things serious with one girl, but she ran off without notice. Changing her number, not leaving a trail. He didn't want to resort to unconventional methods to find her, so he left things as they were. He didn't forget about her though. It pissed him off whenever he thought about her. She proved to him women were unreliable creatures whose heart changed faster than lightning. Never again he'd make the mistake of letting anyone in. Women only betrayed him.

"Dad."

Valerio's eyes softened as he got to his feet, "You don't know why that girl ran off. You can't judge her for it, maybe something happened. Don't be so quick to write people off, Nero."

"She left without a word. Does she not care about me? Didn't she stop to think I'd be worried about her, that it would drive me insane not knowing where she is or how she is doing?"

"We have the means to find out, " Valerio suggested.

"I'm not wasting any money on that backstabbing bitch."

"Nero!"

"Dad."

His father knew he wasn't changing his mind about this subject. The pain was too fresh for him to move past his anger. He knew in the back of his mind that his father was right. She had been a rational girl, intelligent and funny. She wouldn't run off without a reason, especially like the way she did. But the betrayal he felt made it hard for him to let go his anger. He wasn't ready yet, with time he knew he'd see things differently. In the meantime he'd have all the fun he wanted, he wasn't attached to anyone. He could do whatever he wanted, with or without his father's approval.

"I have a meeting in fifteen minutes, " Nero announced.

"I see, you're kicking me out."

Nero smiled at his father who got to his feet and tossed his colorful cup in the bin, "Politely, of course."

Valerio nodded, "Of course." He then pointed at his son, "Don't forget about the coffee shop."

Nero brushed him off, "Yeah, Yeah, I'll pay your beloved coffee shop a visit tomorrow morning."

"Be kind to her."

Nero threw his head back and laughed, "I'll be kind to her." He promised.

Valerio headed to the door and glanced over his shoulder, "Just saying a woman can be dangerous when she is pissed. I don't want her to start serving me disgusting coffee."

Even when his dad pissed him off the man still managed to make him laugh, "Dad, I get it. I won't be rude to her, I promise!"

"Okay, text me the minute you leave that coffee shop."

"Dad, seriously! I have a meeting in a few minutes."

"Okay, okay, I'm already leaving."

Nero sighed when his dad did leave the office, giving him some time to catch his breath. He knew after his mother and little sister died in a car crash his father wasn't letting him out of his sight. Valerio was afraid something would happen to him, not wanting to lose another family member. He was always up in his space, trying to spend as much time together as possible. Nero tried to be reasonable about it, but sometimes it was suffocating him. He wouldn't tell his father that though. He knew the man went through a lot. Losing a wife and a daughter, the pain Valerio felt was probably ten times worse than the pain he felt. He'd let his father be in his space if that made his heart ache less.

***

Nero slipped into his joggers and let his eyes travel to the mocha skinned girl with loose curls. He had to admit that going after her was purely based on his attraction toward her. He saw her and knew he had to have her in his bed. Nothing more. She smiled sweetly at him as she slipped back into her dress and turned around.

"Could you zip me up, please?"

On bare feet, he walked over to her, placed a hand on her hip and zipped up her skin tight dress which showed off all her curves. That dress left nothing to the imagination and when he laid eyes on her he pictured what she'd look like without that dress on. Now he didn't have to imagine it, he knew and he definitely liked what he saw. He watched as she faced him and placed her hands on his chest. Letting a hand rest on her firm bum he leaned in and kissed her.

"Thanks." He told her as he pulled out of the sweet kiss, "I had a great time."

"Me too." She pulled away from him and walked past him to collect her heels and bag.

"I called a car over for you when you took a shower."

"Thanks." She straightened after slipping her heels on and flicked her hair back, "Let me know if you want to repeat that." Her chocolate colored eyes told him she was definitely up for that. He could tell she liked what she was seeing too.

No matter how much fun he had, he knew it wasn't right to repeat things. He rarely mixed business and pleasure, he cursed himself for not being able to stay away from her. Thankfully she didn't make a fuss when he told her she couldn't stay the night because he had an early morning. She understood since she ran her own business as well. An agency which planned events for businesses, it was up and coming. She was the type of girl who matched him well. Yet whenever he pondered about being serious with someone her face always popped up in his head. He didn't understand why he couldn't forget about her.

"Sure." He told her.

She smiled, "Night, Nero."

"Night, Audrey."

Once she left his hotel room he ran his fingers through his messy dark locks and let out a tired sigh. Cleaning the mess up he headed to the bathroom and took a shower, washing her off him. She helped him de-stress, but the feeling of messing up never faded. If his father found out about her he'd preach to him about morals. Never mixing business and pleasure because it caused problems, always. Seeing he took the business over from his father, Valerio never let an opportunity pass to teach him properly. He just had to make sure to distract his father so he wouldn't intrude, the best way to do that was to focus on the lady whom Valerio was so infatuated with.

***

Nero answered his phone as his driver took him to the little coffee shop his father adored. He actually needed coffee to start his day since he got no sleep whatsoever. To get his mind of Audrey and his father he buried himself in his work, going at it till four in the morning. He only got two and a half hour of sleep which made him behave like the Grinch. Coffee would put him in a better mood.

"Dad."

"You didn't come over for dinner yesterday."

"Dad, I told you I had a business dinner which ran late."

"The one with that party planner?"

Nero sighed, "Event planner. She is organizing our annual charity ball, so be nice."

"She is a lovely lady and I've read good things about her agency. A good choice you made there."

Nero narrowed his eyes, not liking where his father was going with this, "Dad, we're working together. Don't even go there."

"Didn't you go there, last night?"

Nero covered his eyes with his hand, inhaling deeply through his nose. His father had people spying on him, there was no denying that. How else did Valerio find out about him sleeping with Audrey? It was the one thing he didn't want his father to find out about. To his surprise though, Valerio didn't seem upset about the affair, or rather the slip-up.

"Whatever. Don't push it, dad, I mean it."

"Fine, at least you're not flat out saying no. You heading to the coffee shop right now?"

He smiled and dropped his hand, staring out the window, "Yeah, I'm curious to meet her. And I do need some coffee in my system right now."

"Okay, then I'll let you go. Don't forget about reporting back to me." Valerio reminded him.

"I won't, " Nero promised him.

"Talk to you later then."

Ending the call Nero rested his head back and closed his eyes, enjoying the few minutes of peace. It gave him time to rest his eyes. When he completed his task for his father he'd have a conversation with Valerio about boundaries. He knew his father had a need to keep him safe at all cost, but spying on him was pushing it. He'd make sure his father understood that it wasn't right to have people following his every move.

"We're here, sir." His driver announced, snapping him out of his thoughts.

Opening his eyes Nero reached for the handle and opened the door, "Thanks, I'll be back in ten."

"Okay, sir."

Climbing out of the SUV Nero closed the door and faced the little coffee shop his father was so obsessed with. It looked like the average kind of coffee shop from the outside. The colorful flowerpots did remind him of that cup Valerio always carried around in the morning. Straightening his jacket Nero headed to the coffee shop, hoping the coffee was as good as his father claimed it to be.

Grabbing the empty tray which had been filled with a delicious smelling Lemon tart, Hannah pushed the door open to the kitchen and entered it. Hannah placed the tray down on the sterile looking counter and watched as Maria grabbed another tray out of the oven with a cute little oven mitt. Maria baked a few blueberry muffins, they were popular in the morning while people came in for a coffee to go. It sold out immediately so Maria often baked them.

"Want one?" Maria asked her with a small smile, "They're even more delicious when you eat them heated."

"I do want one." Hannah admitted, "But I want a cup of mint tea with it."

Maria laughed, "I'll make us both some mint tea."

Hannah watched as Maria strolled out of the kitchen with a tray in hand, "Thank you, Maria!"

Hannah took a moment to catch her breath. She had been in cleaning mode all morning, wiping the tables and vacuuming the store even though they cleaned up yesterday after closing time. The sluggish feeling was slowing her down now. Maria had seen it, offering her a little break. She knew the store wouldn't survive without Maria. She was grateful to that woman.

"How can I help you?" Maria's voice traveled into the kitchen, the woman sounded different than usual. Bubbly and cheerful, almost girlish. The voice she always made fun of when Hannah used it to be overly sweet to her customers.

"I'd like an Espresso."

Hannah bumped into the counter, covering her mouth to keep the noise down. That voice, that deep voice, rich and cultured. It made her heart race and her body react to it even though her brain sternly told her body to cool it. The noise of her hitting the counter and moving a tray probably traveled to the store because she heard Maria giggle and apologize.

"The owner." Maria let him know, "She must have run into something."

"Maybe you should check on her, that sounded painful."

Maria giggled once more. The giggling started to annoy Hannah, her usual levelheaded Maria was turning into a giggling teenager because of him. It wasn't that she couldn't comprehend why he was a charming guy with looks which equaled that of a supermodel. The irrational part of her, though, felt betrayed.

"Morning, Maria, is Hannah in the kitchen?"

Hannah buried her face in her hands, cursing the fact that her mother showed up without notice. She had never done that before. Her mother was a woman following the rules. Social rules, society's rules, the company rules, it didn't matter. Her mother followed them all without straying.

"Hannah?" She heard him repeat.

From all the women he dated it was her name he remembered, she knew she should feel flattered. But she cursed him for it. He wasn't supposed to remember her. She was supposed to be a face which blurred in the sea of women who surrounded him.

"My daughter." Her mother explained to him, "Oh my, you look familiar to me."

"Really?" He sounded amused, "Might be because my father is a regular."

"The handsome gentleman." Her mother sounded flirty which made Hannah want to teleport herself into space and never look back. Oxygen be damned.

"I'd refer to him differently."

"Handsome and funny, that's cute." The change in her mother's voice made her run to the back door, she wasn't going to let that happen.

"Where are you running off to? Lillian Holmes is here to see her daughter, I can see why you'd want to escape, but that's unlike you." She turned to look at Maria who looked confused, a hand on her hip, "You planning to experiment with some baking? I mean, I don't mind. Especially since there is a handsome guy out there."

Hannah shook her head at Maria, "I need to get out of here, fast."

Maria made sure the door behind her was closed and closed the distance between them, "What's going on?"

"The sperm donor, " Hannah whispered to Maria.

"That guy?" Maria asked surprised, "You sure know how to pick 'em."

"Maria!" Hannah hissed.

"Fine, you can wait outside. I'll tell your mom you're doing some quick shopping for some sweets I'm baking later. She'll buy it considering I'm always baking."

"Thanks!"

Hannah slipped through the back door, letting Maria handle the situation. It wasn't ideal, she rather takes care of her own problems, but she wasn't ready to face him. Not when she was nearly five months pregnant with the baby he knew nothing about. She was waiting for eight minutes outside, wrapping her arms around herself to get a little warmer. She didn't think he'd take his time, he always had been busy, always on the move. He was taking his sweet time today though. It pissed her off more.

"You rather stay out here in the cold than face me?"

She swallowed hearing that voice. He found her hiding spot, he wasn't supposed to. But then again he always had been an intelligent man, picking up on the little things. Inhaling deeply she slowly turned around and faced him.

"Nero." She greeted.

"Hannah." His eyes traveled to her round stomach, "That's a surprise."

He didn't sound surprised and when she scanned his face he didn't look surprised either. She did, however, see the pure rage in his eyes, hidden by his usual charming smile. She tried to cover up her round stomach by lowering her arms, it didn't hide anything though. But it gave her a bit of comfort.

"I suppose it surprised us all."

"Hannah-"

She raised a hand, not wanting him to come any closer, "Please, don't."

His eyes darkened, "We need to talk about it, don't you think?"

She didn't want to talk about it. She already convinced herself she could do everything on her own, she didn't need Nero D'Amore to help her. He helped her enough already.

"I-I need to get back to work."

Nero didn't listen to her and stepped closer to her. They were standing in a narrow street, his presence overwhelming her. He always looked intimidating because of the coldness in his eyes and his impressive height. He knew how to use them without using force or raising his voice. It was something which had intrigued her. Now, however, it scared her. She was on the receiving end of his coldness and there was no escape.

"Maria has it covered."

"You don't know that." She narrowed her eyes at him, "I can't let my employee deal with the morning rush on her own." She gulped down the fear she felt and stepped closer to him as well, their feet nearly touching as she tilted her head back to look him in the eyes again, "So right now I don't have the time for you."

She was about to turn around and head back inside when he grabbed onto her wrist, keeping her in place, "Then you make time for me." He told her, "This is something which can't be ignoring."

She pulled her wrist away from him, "Why are you assuming this has anything to do with you? Don't be so arrogant and think the world always revolves around you."

"Then you saw someone else right after me?" He asked her, the tone of his voice mocking her.

She remained silent.

"That's what I thought. Since you can't miss work now we'll meet up after the coffee shop closes. We're going to talk about this, Hannah."

She knew once Nero made up his mind nothing could change it. He was a stubborn man, always had been she assumed. When they were together for a few months it was something about him which she found hilarious. She'd purposely argue with him to see him get so intense about something like what kind of pizza topping was better. She still preferred pineapple with tuna which he probably still found an insane choice. He preferred the classic cheese pizza. They were so different, his pizza preference should have been the first sign to alert her about them not being a match at all.

"Hannah?" He asked, placing his hand on her shoulder to get her attention, "Where are you right now?" He leaned in, his eyes scanning her face, "You feeling okay? Let's get you back inside, I think you need to sit down."

She held onto his biceps, staring straight into his hazel eyes, "Y-Yeah, I need to sit down."

"Let's get back inside."

Hannah turned away from him and unlocked the back door. She stepped inside first, hearing Nero's footsteps behind her. Maria was still in the front of the store. She could hear her mom chatting away with her, Maria probably couldn't escape. The poor girl.

"I'd like to stay here." She told him.

His eyes traveled to the door which led to the front of the store, "You don't want your mom to find out." He concluded, "She'll find out about me eventually. I'm not going to stay in the background." He warned her.

She was well aware her mother would find out about Nero eventually. He wouldn't stay quiet, he'd be up in her space. But today wasn't the day she'd tell her mother Nero was the sperm donor. She'd freak and try and match them up. She was also aware that Nero would probably agree with everything her mother had to say. She needed to talk to him alone, away from Lillian and her meddling ways.

"I'll meet up with you at the hotel. Does eight sound good to you?"

He sighed tiredly, "Fine, I'll go with it for now. Eight is fine, come to my penthouse instead. I'm not having this conversation in public."

She knew she already demanded too much of him, his voice told her that much. She wasn't going to be difficult now. Them arguing about it would alert Lillian and Maria. She didn't want an audience either.

"I'll be there at eight." She promised him.

"Then I'll leave through the back door." He told her, not sounding too happy about that.

She watched him walk away, letting out a relieved sigh once he left. Her most valued customer, Valerio, was his dad. He told her she looked familiar to him, but she hadn't officially met him when she dated Nero. Once she had seen a portrait of his family in his office, but it was only briefly. So when Valerio strolled into her coffee shop she didn't link it together. Now she wished she had given it more thought. Valerio had left hints along the way. When he talked about his wife and daughter passing. His son being a workaholic, but always taking the time for him. His son is a handsome guy who'd be good to her. They had the same hazel eyes, but not once did she think they were related. She had no time to call herself a bloody idiot and kick her own butt because her mother was waiting. Taking a deep breath, Hannah forced a smile on her face and pushed through the door, meeting her mother's curious gaze.

"Hello, Hannah."

"Morning, mom. Here for your morning coffee?"

Her mother had a look in her eye which Hannah hadn't seen before. Her eyes were soft and warm while her cheeks looked rosy. Hannah had a feeling where this was going, but she wanted her mother to confirm those suspicions.

"I figured I'd stop by to see that handsome gentleman again." Her mother giggled, the same way Maria had a moment ago. She could now conclude that it was the giggle of a woman who was infatuated with a handsome guy, "He was so kind."

"Valerio didn't stop by today." She told her mother, not mentioning that his son did stop by, "Maybe he'll stop by tomorrow."

"Maybe." Her mother looked disappointed by that, "I dolled up though. How about we have lunch out together? I'll wait for you, maybe help Maria in the kitchen?"

Hannah turned to look at Maria to make sure the woman was okay with it. The kitchen was her domain and she wouldn't interfere with it.

"Sounds like a great plan, Lillian." Maria told her mother, "I could use some help. I'm making a classic cheesecake and an apple pie for our lunch specials."

Maria guided Lillian to the kitchen, giving Hannah some space. It gave Hannah time to prepare for her meeting with Nero. He knew the baby was his, she denied it with her silence when he suggested she jumped right into another guy's bed. She wasn't like that and they both knew it. What scared her was just how much Nero wanted to be in her baby's life.

***

Hannah made her way through the luxurious looking lobby, flashing a smile to the receptionist behind the counter. Heading straight for the elevator bank she pushed the button and patiently waited with a few other people for the car to arrive.

There was an older couple standing behind her, chatting away about the amazing dinner they had. Their talk about food and what cuisine they liked best made the nerves Hannah felt fade just a tad. The way they argued about their favorite food reminded her of the playful arguments she had with Nero about their favorite food. It was a happier time when they pretended they would be together forever.

As the elevator arrived she stepped aside to let people stroll out while she gestured to the couple to head in first.

"No, honey, you go in first." The woman told her with a smile.

Hannah knew it was because she was pregnant. Ever since she started showing, people around her showed her a different kind of kindness. It was odd how much a pregnancy affected so many people around her.

"Thank you."

She stepped inside and kept her eyes on the digital display, making sure she wouldn't miss the floor he stayed at. Top floor, penthouse, not to miss. But she wanted to be extra careful. Holding tightly onto her bag Hannah shifted nervously from foot to foot. She hadn't set foot in his penthouse since the day she ran away from him. The memories which came flooding back when Valerio mentioned the D'Amore hotel were so vivid now she could see flashes of her together with Nero all over this hotel. Them snuggling up in the elevator and joking around, Nero being playful and teasing her. Them walking hand in hand through the hallway, heading to the main office. She needed those images to stop. She couldn't have them slowing her down when dealing with an intimidating Nero. He'd walk all over her with his nice Italian shoes. Inhaling and exhaling she promised herself she'd face him without showing any sign of weaknesses, she'd stand her ground. By the time the elevator reached the penthouse, she was ready to talk about her future together with Nero D'Amore.